Floor scrubbing machine



Jan. 24, 1956 G. COPLEN 2,731,659

FLOOR SCRUBBING MACHINE Filed Dec. 8, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

GEORGE COPL EN Jan. 24, 1956 COPLEN 2,731,659

FLOOR SCRUBBING MACHINE Filed Dec. 8, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 \'\\\\'a INVENTOR.

22 Gin/Pa: Cam 4w Iilnited States Patent FLOOR SCRUBBING MACHINE George Coplen, Cripple Creek, Colo.

Application December 8, 1952, Serial No..324,'671

2filaims. (C1. 15-320) This invention relates to a fioorscrubbing machine and has for its principal object the provision of .a portable, wheel-supported, floor scrubbing machine having a forward scrubbing brush compartment and a rear rinsing brush compartment so arranged that, :as the machine is advanced over a floor, the forward scrubbing brush compartment will subject the floor to a scrubbing with detergent solution and remove the soiled solution. The rear rinsing brush compartment will then follow over the scrubbed floor and brush the latter with clear water for rinsing purposes and remove the soiled rinse water so that complete floor cleansing will be accomplished with a single passage of the machine.

Other objects and advantages reside in the details of construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efiiciency. These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like parts in all views of the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is a plan view of the improved floor scrubbing machine,

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section therethrough, taken on the line 22, Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom view, looking upwardly, of the improvide floor scrubber;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section, taken on the line 44, Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged, detail section, taken on the line 55, Fig. 4.

The improved fioor scrubber comprises a hood-like, open-bottomed housing supported by two side wheels 11 and a rear castor wheel 40. The housing is adapted to be pushed or pulled across a floor by means of any suitable handle mounted on hinge pins 12 carried in handle bosses 13 formed on the housing 10. The housing is divided by means of two cross partitions 14 into a forward scrubbing brush compartment 15 and a rear rinsing brush compartment 16.

The forward compartment 15 houses a front scrubbing brush 17, and the rear compartment 16 houses a similar rinsing brush 18. The brushes 17 and 18 are attached to and suspended from the forward and rear extremities of an oscillating frame or plate 19 in any desired manner, such as by means of suitable attachment screws 20. The plate 19 is supported in a horizontal plane upon crank pins 21 eccentrically mounted in and projecting downwardly from two crank discs 22. The discs 22 are secured or formed on the lower extremities of two spacedapart, vertical brush shafts 23, and the plate 19 is supported on the crank pins 21 by means of cap screws 44 threaded axially into the pins, as shown in Fig. 5, or in any other desired manner.

The brush shafts are journalled in the top of the housing 10 and extend upwardly therefrom and are driven synchronously through the medium of two similar sets of bevel gears 24 driven from a horizontal motor shaft :25. motor :shaft .25 extends oppositely outward from an electric motor :26 mounted on the housing 710. The amount and direction ffif eccentricity of the 1W0 crank pins :is similar so that the two .pins will rotate in similar horizontal planes to oscillate the frame 19 in a horizontal plane :and till a circular :arc. The horizontal, circular -:uscillation of theplateis, inf course,- communicated to the brushes [7 and .13 :to .nscillate the latter in circular paths inicontact withithezflonr.

A suitable aqueous cleaning solution is supplied to the forward :brush 17 from a perforated spray pipe 27, n clean .rinse water is supplied to the rear brush 1 8 by means of a similar spray pipe 28. The spray pipes 27 and 28 are horizontally positioned in their respective brush compartments in front of the brushes therein.

The spray pipe 27 receives cleaning solution through a solutinn pipe '29 a detergent or soap box 30 having .a suitable screw .cap 41. Water is supplied to the soap ihnx 30 rthcough :a water pressure pipe 31":leading from a watcr pump 32 mounted on the housing 10. The water pump 32 is positioned at and is driven from one extremity of the motor shaft 25. .Clear rinse water is supplied to the spray pipe 28 through a rinse pipe 33 which is connected to the water pressure pipe 31 ahead of the soap box 30.

Water is supplied to the pump 32 through a water supply pipe 42 from any suitable source through a trailing water hose 34. The water is prevented from flowing from the brush compartments 15 and 16 by means of rubber dams or squeegees 35 which are mounted in receiving grooves in the bottom of the housing and which surround each of the brush compartments and contact the floor.

Excess water is removed from the floor at the rear of each brush compartment by means of elongated, U-shaped suction hoods 36. The hoods 36 are supported in the housing at the ends and at the rear of each brush compartment in close relation to the floor surface. The hoods communicate with a suction pipe 37 leading to a suction pump 38 positioned at and driven from the other extremity of the motor shaft 25. The wastewater and solution is conducted from the suction pump 38 through a discharge pipe 43 to a trailing waste hose 39.

Thus, it can be seen that as the improved floor scrubber is pushed forwardly across the floor, the floor surface will be subjected first to a scrubbing with cleaning solution, by the brush 17, thence to a rinsing scrubbing, by the brush 18, with clear, clean water. It can also be seen that the soiled cleaning solution is continuously removed by the forward suction hood 36, and the soiled rinse water is continuously removed by the rearmost suction hood 36. Water can be supplied to the hose 34 from any suitable container or source, and the waste water can be discharged from the waste hose 39 into any suitable receiver or directly to the sewer.

In use, the entire top of the housing would be enclosed in a suitable cap or cover which would conceal the pumps and operating mechanism. This cover has been omitted on the drawing for the purpose of exposing the essential parts.

The soap box is preferably provided with a pressuretight screw cap 41 through which the soap or detergent can be admitted.

While a specific form of the improvement has been described and illustrated herein, it is to be understood that the same may be varied, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired secured by Letters Patent is:

l. A floor scrubbing device comprising: an open-bottomed housing; partition means extending transversely of said housing and dividing the latter into a front brush compartment and a rear brush compartment; vertical brush shafts rotatably mounted in said housing, there being one brush shaft extending downwardly medially of each compartment; a crank member mounted on the lower extremity of each brush shaft; an eccentric crank pin carried by each crank member and projecting downwardly therefrom; a horizontally positioned brush frame sup ported by and extending between said crank pins and through openings provided in said partition means; a brush in each of said compartments, both of said brushes being fixedly secured to said brush frame and extending downwardly therefrom into contact with the floor; a bevel gear on the upper extremity of each brush shaft; a horizontal drive shaft extending between said brush shafts; bevel gears on, said drive shaft meshing with the bevel gears on said brush shafts; an electric motor operatively connected with said drive shaft for rotating the latter; a water pump; a suction pump, said pumps being driven from said drive shaft; supply conduits extending from said pumps to said compartments for supplying water thereto; suction hoods in said compartments positioned in close relation to the floor; and suction conduits extending from References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,240,799 Gray Sept. 18, 1917 1,268,963 Gray June 11, 1918 1,391,754 Bair Sept. 27, 1921 1,839,824 Zucker Jan. 5, 1933 1,909,338 Dulin May 16, 1933 1,938,068 Deutscher Dec. 5, 1933 2,023,588 Heckroth Dec. 10, 1935 2,239,183 Willard Apr. 22, 1941 2,247,993 Fisker July 1, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS 204,494 Switzerland Aug. 1, 1939 

